Today, Lod is most famously known as the location of Israel's Ben-Gurion International Airport. However, Lod is also a very ancient city. Archaeologists date the city from 6th millenium BC and the city appears 7 times in the Holy Bible. Lod is also known as Lydda. It is the site of St: Peter's healing of a paralytic man in (Acts 9:32-38). But what makes Lod so special is its association with the legendary St: George. The story of St: George and his encounter with a dragon is very popular and he is venerated as a saint in almost all Christian denominations. He is also the patron saint of many European countries. St: George was actually a Roman soldier under Diocletian Caesar's army. St: George was was born to a Christian family in Lydda (Lod) between 275 AD and 285 AD. He died as a Christian martyr in Nicomedia on April 23, 303 AD. At the time Emperor Constantine (4th Cent AD), a Church was built in Lydda to commemorate St: George. The Church was a Basilica by 7th Cent, when Muslims arrived. In 1010, the Church was destroyed by Muslims. Crusader's rebuilt the Church only to be destroyed again by Saladin in 1191. The modern Greek Orthodox Church is built over the earlier Crusader ruins only in 1870s. The Church now shares space with the adjacent El-Chodr Mosque. You can also go through my blog archives (August, 2008-www.lajupaulk2.blogspot.com) for more photographs and details.
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